to turn supermarket delivery away when they ring on my door bell two hours early?

[BasilParsley]

Sort(ish) question: If the supermarket delivery driver turns up at 9am rather than 11am because he's delivering across the road anyway (with no phone call to ask if I could accept an early delivery which is usual) would I be unreasonable to tell him to go away and come back later?

(Long background) It's played on my mind all week so could do with some advice please.

There is a v. small care home opposite my house that also gets the same supermarket to deliver, generally on the same day, but at different times (sometimes around the same time, sometimes earlier, sometimes later).

The reason I order a slot later in the morning is that I have a reasonably severe disability that means it takes me a while to get going in the morning e.g. the ablutions and the getting dressed, breakfasting etc.

Due to the fact that my disability makes me more prone to infections like covid and it takes a lot longer for me put stuff away , I always ask the driver to unload the crates into bags I supply in my porch. I then take my time, decanting those bags into the kitchen cupboards/fridge/freezer etc.

Driver last week clearly had a 9am-ish delivery at the home across the road so rang on my doorbell around that time. I was still in my dressing gown (and wrapped in a towel underneath because I was drip-drying having not long got out of the bath).

I told him he was too early but maybe he could give me five minutes to get dressed then I can accept the delivery. He said yes I'm early, but I've just delivered over the road so if you get your bags, I'll put your order in them and put them in the porch so I won't need to come back.

I felt so coerced (and still bleary-eyed and getting to grips with the day), I went and hid in my skanky dressing gown in the living room for a bit until I heard him call from the porch that it was all done. Got to the porch and the outer porch door is wide open and the bags are all preventing it from being closed.

So I had to deal with it then and there until I was able to close the outer door which left me in a bit of a state for while.

What would you have done?

Not answered the door.

I am sorry this happened to you. Next time don’t answer the door.

You can ask for a note to be put in your account that you don’t accept early delivery.

Not answered the door or said no I can't.

I've made complaints to both Sainsbury’s and Asda in the past for this.
One driver was really really rude to me for not being home when he tried to deliver 45 minutes early. He was banging on my front door so much that a neighbour came out to see what was going on. Fortunately I have a doorbell camera and cctv which I sent to the store.

If I book a slot I expect it to come then. Not before not later. If they need to change it then the bare minimum I expect is a phone call.

Yes, next time don’t feel you have to answer the door. He will then have to deliver at the time you asked for. I can see the driver’s pint of view about saving trips but you asked for delivery at specific time for very particular reasons and shouldn’t be made to feel coerced

Yes, I realise now not answering the door is what I could have done. BUT, unless I curtain twitch, I can't see who's at the door and as the outer front door is a shared one, I feel it's unethical to install a ring type video thing.

Plus, in my defence, this situation has never happened before so I thought it might the postman or someone else. I never expected it to be the delivery driver...

I wouldn't answer the door, and I'd put a complain into the company if they were refusing to return later.

Ocado kept delivering our stuff up to an hour early and it drove me insane. It was booked for 8am and we had a tiny baby so genuinely weren't awake or available earlier than that. The annoying fucker would unload all the bags onto the doorstep before he rang the bell so I didn't even really have the option to ask him to come back later.

I once had Asda attempt a delivery 4 hours early. Called them to say i was at work so needed my delivery at the time slot selected- they oked this.
delivery didn’t arrive. They said the next day then claimed he couldn’t find it.

then another time- same scenario. Haven’t ordered from Asda since.

If you have a slot, it is annoying and daft for them to come 2 hours early for their convenience. What if you're not in?! I would complain @BasilParsley

I wouldn’t have answered the door if I was in a dressing gown, not long out the bath. However, if I was up and dressed and there was no other reason not to, I’d have just accepted the delivery.

Yes you can - tell him to shove the bags back onto the lorry! I'm shocked to hear that it happens with Ocado, I've used all the major supermarkets at one time or another, they're the only ones I've never had an issue with.
They always call ahead/text before arriving early, when it happens!
I'd be ringing up and demanding my delivery money back + compensation every time this happened personally.

YANBU OP. You've bought and paid for delivery ('free' delivery is obviously worked into the prices of the products), at the time slot of YOUR choosing. Not for their convenience.

You don't have to accept it, but I'd say if he wanted to deliver early then he'd need to carry it to my kitchen as I wasn't ready.

Do you have to request for the driver to help pack your shopping bags or it is something the driver will do if asked when delivering?

I book a time that is convenient to me for a reason. YANBU to tell him you understand his train of thought, but this time isn't convenient for you, hence why you booked a later slot. He's trying his luck, but people book slots for a reason!

He’s obviously a regular delivery driver as he knows the bag routine. He wasn’t expecting you to do anything at that time.

It wouldn’t have bothered me at all to let him drop of the shopping and leave it on my porch until I was ready to put it away.

I doubt it the driver would have cared/even noticed that much if you are in a dressing gown.
When I get my delivery (Iceland) they hand the bags over and it takes about a minute.
Isn't that the joy of home delivery - you don't need to be dressed and ready for the day to get your food ?

I use Tescos. They always text or phone to ask if I want the delivery early. Sometimes I've missed the text or call, having been at work, and as far as I know, they have not just turned up anyway. DH works at home and daughters work shifts so someone is failrly likely to have been in if they had.

Thanks for the suggestion @Ridiculous24 but I really don't want them in my house when I'm still dishabille and the probability of the dog escaping through open doors.... The current system works fine - when it's to time!

PS Once when I accepted an early delivery - 2 hours early, like you - I asked what they would do if I'd said no and the driver said he would wait. On reddit I've seen posts by people who deliver groceries saying they often spend hours reading in their cabs between deliveries.

Mine are always really late now and I’ve had to stop getting deliveries as if I have an appt or school run I can’t be there

I have a note on my order explaining that I am CEV so ask that the delivery driver puts my order in the bags that I supply in the porch rather than come into the house. They do that...

But the driver turned up two hours early so that means the shopping could potentially sit there for two hours, not great if op has fridge and freezer stuff. Two hours is too early to turn up with the shopping.

Asda by any chance? I've stopped using them. They repeatedly arrived whilst I was still out, up to two hours early, then phoned to shout at me for not being in, demanding to know when I'd be back, and piling my shopping on the doorstep and driving off as soon as they saw me.

Fridge stuff can sit at room temp for a couple of hours. Freezer stuff you can whip away a bit sooner - the driver knew OP was home. He didn’t dump and run.

Like I say, I just couldn’t get worked up about it. Substitutions on the other hand are the reason I don’t shop on line!